Joe Locke

Joe Locke
Locke in 2024
Born
Joseph William Locke

(2003-09-24) 24 September 2003 (age 23)
Douglas, Isle of Man
OccupationActor
Years active2022–present

Joseph William Locke (born 24 September 2003) is a Manx actor. He is known for his lead role as high school student Charlie Spring in the Netflix teen series Heartstopper (2022–2024) and its series finale film Heartstopper Forever (2026), for which he received two Children's and Family Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Performance nominations, winning on the second nomination in 2025. In 2024, he starred as Billy Maximoff / William Kaplan in the Marvel Cinematic Universe miniseries Agatha All Along and as Tobias Ragg in a Broadway revival of the musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.

Early life

Joseph William Locke was born on 24 September 2003 and grew up in Douglas, Isle of Man. His paternal family is Irish. His father runs a newsagent, while his mother is a special needs teacher.

Locke attended Ballakermeen High School. He told ITV's This Morning in April 2022 that he was studying for A-level exams in politics, history and English. While in school, Locke and three fellow students submitted a petition to government officials to investigate the feasibility of welcoming Syrian refugees to the Isle of Man.

Career

Locke in 2022

Locke participated in the 2020 National Theatre Connections, productions at the Gaiety Theatre, and with the Kensington Art Centre's youth group.

In 2022, Locke began starring as Charlie Spring in his debut television role in the Netflix coming-of-age series Heartstopper, an adaptation of the webcomic and graphic novel of the same name by Alice Oseman. He was chosen out of 10,000 other potential actors who were up for the role through an open casting call. Locke, who was 17 at the time of filming, played a teenage pupil in an English boys' grammar school.

In 2024, Locke starred in Marvel Studios' WandaVision spin-off television series Agatha All Along for Disney+. He played a goth character initially referred to as "Teen", who is later revealed to be William Kaplan. In the same year, Locke took on the role of Tobias Ragg in the musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street on Broadway.

In April 2025, it was announced that Locke would star in a feature length film, Heartstopper Forever, which will serve as the series finale of Heartstopper. He will also serve as an executive producer of the film. In September 2025, Locke made his West End debut in the UK premiere of Clarkston, a play by Samuel D. Hunter. He starred as Jake opposite Ruaridh Mollica.

In January 2026, it was announced that Locke would join Andrew Scott and Olivia Colman in Simon Stone's upcoming Ian Charleson biopic, Elsinore.

Personal life

Locke came out on Instagram when he was 12 years old and told his mother he was gay. Realising he was ready to be out to his family but not the world, he deleted the Instagram post. He came out again at 15. Locke has spoken about his experiences of being a young gay man from the Isle of Man and the parallels with Charlie's story in Heartstopper.

In August 2022, Isle of Man Health Minister, Lawrie Hooper announced that the government would change its blanket ban on gay men donating blood after Locke called for the "archaic" rule to be changed in a video message played at the island's annual pride celebration.

Filmography

Key
† Denotes films that have not yet been released

Film

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2026 Heartstopper Forever Charlie Spring Also executive producer
Elsinore Nicholas
Black Church Bay Jasper
TBA Baby † Post-production

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2022–2024 Heartstopper Charlie Spring Lead role; 24 episodes
2024 Agatha All Along Billy Maximoff / William Kaplan Main role; 9 episodes
The Great Stand Up to Cancer Bake Off Himself Contestant; series 7
2025 Variety Studio: Actors on Actors Himself Series 22; episode 4
2026 Kevin Nene Voice; Episode: "In Heat"
Heartstopper: Ending On a Hi Himself Documentary special
VisionQuest Billy Maximoff / William Kaplan

Theatre

Year Title Role Venue Ref.
2022 The Trials Noah Donmar Warehouse
2024 Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Tobias Ragg Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, Broadway
2025 Clarkston Jake Trafalgar Theatre, West End

Accolades

Award Year Category Nominated work Result Ref.
Children's and Family Emmy Awards 2022 Outstanding Lead Performance Heartstopper Nominated
2025 Won
National Television Awards 2022 Rising Star Heartstopper Nominated
Queerty Awards 2023 Performance – TV Heartstopper Won
2024 Coming Out for Good N/a Won
2025 Badass N/a Runner-up
WhatsOnStage Awards 2023 Best Professional Debut Performance The Trials Won
Broadway.com Audience Awards 2024 Favorite Replacement (Male) Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Nominated
Independent Spirit Awards 2025 Best Breakthrough Performance in a New Scripted Series Agatha All Along Nominated
Saturn Awards 2025 Best Young Performer in a Television Series Agatha All Along Nominated
Human Rights Campaign 2025 Impact Award N/a Won
Newport Beach Film Festival 2025 Breakout Award Heartstopper, Agatha All Along Won
The Astra Awards 2025 Best Cast Ensemble in a Streaming Comedy Series Agatha All Along Nominated
National Diversity Awards 2025 Celebrity of the Year Award Joe Locke and Kit Connor Nominated
Iris Prize 2026 Best Performance in a Male Role in a Feature Film Black Church Bay Shortlisted

References

  1. 1 2 Horton, Adam (11 December 2024). "Manx actor Joe Locke nominated for two international awards". Isle of Man Today. Retrieved 17 October 2026.
  2. ↑ Williams, K-Ci (22 April 2022). "Netflix's Heartstopper Stars Want Everyone to See 'How Amazing and Beautiful Queerness Is'". Teen Vogue. Archived from the original on 23 April 2022. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
  3. ↑ Schneider, Michael (1 November 2022). "Netflix Leads Nomination Tally for First-Ever Children's & Family Emmys". Variety. Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  4. 1 2 Turton, Sam (29 November 2019). "Students present Syria petition". Isle of Man Today. Archived from the original on 23 May 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
  5. ↑ Cleal, Sam (producer) (29 April 2022). Kit Connor and Joe Locke take the BFF Test. BuzzFeed UK (Online video). Archived from the original on 23 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  6. ↑ @joelocke03; (24 September 2021). "Apparently I'm an adult now?!". Archived from the original on 21 July 2022. Retrieved 21 July 2022 – via Instagram.
  7. ↑ "Heartstopper's Joe Locke in running for National Television Award". ITV News. 27 May 2022. Archived from the original on 2 June 2022. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  8. ↑ Williams, Zoe (5 October 2024). "'I want to get hate-tweeted by Donald Trump!': Heartstopper's Joe Locke on trolls, typecasting and turning to the dark side". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 October 2026.
  9. ↑ "Students petition Tynwald to reverse Syrian refugee position". Manx Radio. 26 November 2019. Archived from the original on 23 May 2022. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
  10. ↑ "Netflix show starring Manx actor streams next week". Manx Radio. 17 April 2022. Archived from the original on 17 April 2022. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  11. ↑ Duke, Simon (28 April 2022). "Heartstopper actors force hasty change to This Morning schedule". ChronicleLive. Archived from the original on 30 April 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  12. ↑ "Joe's heart-stopping moment, as he gets picked for lead Netflix role". Isle of Man Today. 2 May 2021. Archived from the original on 27 May 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  13. ↑ "Manx actor lands role in Netflix series". ThreeFM. 24 April 2021. Archived from the original on 23 May 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  14. ↑ Stroude, Will (22 April 2021). "Heartstopper: Kit Connor and Joe Locke to star in Netflix adaption of gay graphic novel". Attitude. Archived from the original on 25 April 2021. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  15. ↑ "Joe Locke". 1883 Magazine. 21 April 2022. Archived from the original on 24 April 2022. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
  16. 1 2 Harrison, Ellie (25 April 2022). "Heartstopper's Joe Locke: 'Lots of queer teenagers feel like they don't deserve love'". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 May 2022. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
  17. ↑ "Who Plays Charlie Spring In Netflix's Heartstopper? Everything You Need To Know About Joe Locke". Capital FM. 22 April 2022. Archived from the original on 2 July 2022. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
  18. ↑ Otterson, Joe (1 November 2022). "Heartstopper Star Joe Locke Joins WandaVision Spinoff Agatha: Coven of Chaos for Disney+ (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 1 November 2022. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  19. ↑ Romano, Nick (3 September 2024). "Joe Locke fuels the mystery of his 'Agatha All Along' 'Teen,' addresses those fan theories". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
  20. ↑ Campione, Katie (10 October 2024). "Agatha All Along Recap: Teen's Identity Is Revealed As The Coven Faces Another Trial". Deadline. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  21. ↑ Warner, Sam (1 February 2024). "Broadway debut in Sweeney Todd: The Musical". DigitalSpy. Archived from the original on 4 February 2024. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  22. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (22 April 2025). "'Heartstopper' To Wrap Nick & Charlie's Story With Feature Film Finale On Netflix In Lieu Of Season 4". Deadline. Retrieved 10 May 2025.
  23. ↑ Ramachandran, Naman (9 July 2025). "'Heartstopper' Star Joe Locke to Make London West End Debut With Samuel D. Hunter's 'Clarkston'". Variety. Retrieved 10 July 2025.
  24. ↑ "Home". Clarkston Play. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  25. 1 2 Wiseman, Andreas (12 January 2026). "Billie Piper, Johnny Flynn, Luke Thompson, Monica Dolan, Juliet Stevenson, Joe Locke, Adeel Akhtar & More Join Andrew Scott & Olivia Colman In Studiocanal's Ian Charleson Film 'Elsinore'". Deadline. Retrieved 12 January 2026.
  26. ↑ Piepenburg, Erik (29 July 2023). "They Put the Heart in 'Heartstopper'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
  27. ↑ James, Alastair (13 April 2022). "Heartstopper's young stars are ready to share the love in Netflix's most uplifting LGBTQ series yet". Attitude. Archived from the original on 15 April 2022. Retrieved 26 April 2022. The conversation then turns to how the actors relate to their characters. As a young gay man, Joe, who is 18 and from the Isle of Man, compares his schooldays with what Charlie goes through.
  28. ↑ Levesley, David (3 June 2022). "Joe Locke: 'I'd love to play the first queer Disney prince or Marvel superhero'". Soho House. Archived from the original on 3 June 2022. Retrieved 3 June 2022. While his generation are universally well equipped on navigating sexuality thanks to social media, and growing up gay, he says, wasn't too big a deal at school, the Isle of Man's policies on it have not always been as forward-thinking.
  29. ↑ "Manx actor Joe Locke calls for gay men blood donation U-turn". BBC News. 15 August 2022. Archived from the original on 31 August 2022. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
  30. ↑ Wakefield, Lily (17 August 2022). "Isle of Man vows to drop queer blood ban after Heartstopper actor calls out 'archaic' rule". PinkNews. Archived from the original on 28 August 2022. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
  31. ↑ @heartstopper; (28 July 2025). "HEARTSTOPPER FOREVER coming to you 2026!". Retrieved 28 July 2025 – via Instagram.
  32. ↑ Tabbara, Mona (11 September 2025). ""UK mystery thriller 'Black Church Bay' starring Tom Cullen and Joe Locke wraps Wales shoot"". screendaily.com. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  33. ↑ "Joe Locke has alien's baby in new movie!". 3FM. Retrieved 13 June 2026.
  34. ↑ Glazebrook, Lewis (14 October 2024). "Agatha All Along Midseason Trailer Confirms Major Theory On Billy Maximoff's Origin & Sets Up Scarlet Witch's Return". Screen Rant. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
  35. ↑ "The Great Stand Up To Cancer Bake Off 2024 - The Great British Bake Off". The Great British Bake Off. 5 February 2024. Archived from the original on 18 March 2024. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
  36. ↑ "Aubrey Plaza's 'Kevin' adds Addison Rae, Joe Locke, Among Guest Stars". 1 April 2026. Retrieved 17 April 2026.
  37. ↑ Rudoy, Matthew (15 October 2026). "VisionQuest's Tommy Star Confirms Major MCU Character Return". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on 16 October 2026. Retrieved 15 October 2026.
  38. ↑ Millward, Tom (29 June 2022). "Heartstopper's Joe Locke and William Gao among the cast of The Trials at Donmar Warehouse". WhatsOnStage. Archived from the original on 29 June 2022. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  39. ↑ "Joe Locke". Playbill. Archived from the original on 7 December 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  40. ↑ "West End premiere of Clarkston to star Joe Locke, Ruaridh Mollica & Sophie Melville". West End theatre. 10 July 2025. Archived from the original on 15 July 2025. Retrieved 15 July 2025.
  41. ↑ Schneider, Michael (11 December 2022). "Heartstopper Leads All Winners at 1st Annual Children's & Family Emmys (FULL LIST)". Variety. Archived from the original on 23 March 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2022.
  42. ↑ Schneider, Michael (2 March 2026). "'Descendants: The Rise of Red,' 'Sesame Street,' 'Heartstopper' Star Joe Locke Among Top Children's & Family Emmy Awards Winners (FULL LIST)". Variety. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  43. ↑ Earp, Catherine (13 October 2022). "National Television Awards: Full winners list". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 5 November 2022. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  44. ↑ "Performance TV Winners". The Queerties. Archived from the original on 3 March 2023. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  45. ↑ "Vote for the 2024 Queerties Winners". Queerty. Retrieved 13 February 2025.
  46. ↑ "Vote for Badass in the 2025 Queerties Awards". Queerty. 20 January 2023. Retrieved 28 January 2025.
  47. ↑ "The 23rd Annual WhatsOnStage Awards – full list of winners". WhatsOnStage.com. 12 February 2023. Archived from the original on 12 February 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  48. ↑ "The Great Gatsby, The Notebook and Back to the Future Lead Nominations for Broadway.com Audience Choice Awards". Broadway. 6 May 2024. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  49. ↑ Lang, Brent (4 December 2024). "Spirit Awards 2025 Nominations: 'Anora' and 'I Saw the TV Glow' Lead Film Categories, 'Shogun' Rules TV". Variety. Archived from the original on 5 December 2024. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
  50. ↑ Hipes, Patrick (5 December 2024). "'Dune: Part Two', 'Fallout' Lead Saturn Awards Nominations". Deadline. Archived from the original on 5 December 2024. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
  51. ↑ Pappy, Aneesha (24 January 2025). "Human Rights Campaign to Honor Heartstopper Actor Joe Locke, Gilded..." HRC. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
  52. ↑ Lee, Abigail (31 January 2025). "Newport Beach Film Festival To Recognize Harris Dickinson, Jessica Gunning, David Jonsson and More for U.K. and Ireland Honors". Variety. Retrieved 31 January 2025.
  53. ↑ "'The Studio' Leads 2025 Astra TV Awards". Awards Radar. 11 June 2025. Retrieved 26 June 2025.
  54. ↑ "Short list for the National Diversity Awards". 25 June 2025.
  55. ↑ Sugg, Aaron (24 September 2026). "Shortlist for the best performance in a male role at Iris Prize 2026 (EXCLUSIVE)". Attitude. Retrieved 24 September 2026.